FTSE Russell, the global index, data and analytics provider, today announces plans to launch a climate and multi-factor index, the FTSE All-World Climate Balanced Comprehensive Factor Index in November 2018. Merseyside Pension Fund (MPF) has selected the index to support the implementation of its Climate Risk Strategy within the Fund’s listed equity portfolio. The objective of MPF’s climate strategy is to align its Responsible Investment policy and activities with the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement. As part of this, the Fund has considered options for capturing both the risks and opportunities arising from climate change. MPF is the fifth largest fund in the UK's Local Government Pension Scheme with £9 billion of assets under management.

The new climate index will sit within FTSE Russell’s Smart Sustainability Index Series. This index series provides investors with the ability to integrate key aspects of climate risk and opportunity alongside multi-factor or smart beta exposure.

FTSE Russell is responding to a growing trend among asset owners to integrate sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations into their investment strategies and stewardship approach. Sustainable Investment benchmarks / indexes also support transparency and disclosure in the capital markets by providing a signal to companies regarding their performance on a range of sustainability and ESG issues.

Aled Jones, Head of Sustainable Investing, Europe, FTSE Russell:
“We are delighted to be working with Merseyside Pension Fund to support its ambitious climate risk strategy. Combining a multi-factor approach with a focused set of sustainability parameters is a new and exciting approach for the integration of sustainability and ESG considerations into passive investment strategies. UK pension funds are actively engaging with companies on their ESG practices and the FTSE All-World Climate Balanced Comprehensive Factor Index will provide an additional powerful basis to increase corporate ESG transparency and performance”.

Owen Thorne, Investment Manager, Merseyside Pension Fund:
“We are pleased to have worked with FTSE Russell to produce a low carbon index solution that provides us with an investable, risk-efficient means of achieving our decarbonisation goals.”

About FTSE Russell:
FTSE Russell is a global index leader that provides innovative benchmarking, analytics and data solutions for investors worldwide. FTSE Russell calculates thousands of indexes that measure and benchmark markets and asset classes in more than 70 countries, covering 98% of the investable market globally.

FTSE Russell index expertise and products are used extensively by institutional and retail investors globally. Approximately $16 trillion is currently benchmarked to FTSE Russell indexes. For over 30 years, leading asset owners, asset managers, ETF providers and investment banks have chosen FTSE Russell indexes to benchmark their investment performance and create ETFs, structured products and index-based derivatives.

A core set of universal principles guides FTSE Russell index design and management: a transparent rules-based methodology is informed by independent committees of leading market participants. FTSE Russell is focused on applying the highest industry standards in index design and governance and embraces the IOSCO Principles. FTSE Russell is also focused on index innovation and customer partnerships as it seeks to enhance the breadth, depth and reach of its offering.

FTSE Russell® is a trading name of FTSE, Russell, FTSE Canada, MTS Next Limited, Mergent, FTSE FI and YB. “FTSE®”, “Russell®”, “FTSE Russell®”, “MTS®”, “FTSE4Good®”, “ICB®”, “Mergent®” , “WorldBIG®”, “USBIG®”, “EuroBIG®”, “AusBIG®”, “The Yield Book®”, and all other trademarks and service marks used herein (whether registered or unregistered) are trademarks and/or service marks owned or licensed by the applicable member of the LSE Group or their respective licensors and are owned, or used under licence, by FTSE, Russell, MTSNext, FTSE Canada, Mergent, FTSE FI or YB. FTSE International Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority as a benchmark administrator.

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"FTSE Russell" is a trading name of FTSE International Limited (“FTSE”) and Frank Russell Company (“Russell”) and their respective subsidiary undertakings, which are members of the London Stock Exchange Group plc group.

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